World Class Championship Wrestling 22/01/1983

Kevin von Erich vs King Kong Bundy

This is for Kevin’s North American title. Kevin is all fight, in the face of Bundy early doors, to the extent that he actually gets Bundy over on a side headlock. Even more unlikely, they work some mat reversals, including Bundy countering to a headscissors. Didn’t expect that. Lovely spot where Bundy won’t let Kevin back into the ring, so Kevin does laps of the ring, using his speed to sneak an opening. Von Erich get the claw, but Bundy is in the ropes. Bundy moves the referee in the way as Kevin comes off the top, taking him out, and throws von Erich over the top rope, but it seems that the ref spots it, as he pulls Kevin out of the way of an avalanche attempt to declare him the winner. Really neat match.

Brian Adias vs Terry Gordy

Adias is accompanied by Kerry von Erich, so Gordy has his focus on Kerry most of the match. It affects his concentration, as Adias breaks a headlock to get an overhead wristlock instead. Sadly, a lot of this match is Gordy holding a headlock, which isn’t very interesting. Michael Hayes comes out to lure Kerry away, and the distraction lets Gordy hit a piledriver to win.

King Kong Bundy vs The Samoan

Pretty pedestrian squash for Bundy. He just wears the Samoan down methodically, though his big kneedrop to the back looks great. An avalanche is followed by a backbreaker and a splash for the win.

World Class Championship Wrestling 15/01/1983

This is the first episode of World Class after the Freebirds turned heel on Kerry von Erich in his NWA title match against Flair, and in keeping with that, this is a very Freebirds heavily episode

Buddy Roberts vs Brian Adidas

Adidas looks pretty awkward in the early stages, stumbling running the ropes, taking a monkey flip clumsily and hitting a poor pair of dropkicks. Roberts takes over by cheapshotting on a rope break, and levels Adidas with some big shots, including nasty knees and kicks to the head. Buddy continues by working the arm of Adidas, including a nice bit where he keeps trying pinfalls while holding the ropes, moving just in time to avoid getting caught. It’s a familiar spot, but executed really well, as the ref never catches him doing it, but is suspicious of the shaking ropes, until the third time when he catches Roberts in the act. Felt natural, as opposed to “a bit”. Adidas gets two on a terrible sunset flip, and Roberts gets a series of two counts from a swinging neckbreaker and a backbreaker, before the time limit expires. Great stuff from Roberts.

Michael Hayes vs Al Madril

The crowd is absolutely molten for this, popping every time Madril lands a shot. Hayes stalls a lot in the early stages, not giving the fired up Madril a chance to retain control. Hayes rakes Madril’s eyes to take over, and goes to work wearing him down, with chinlocks and kneedrops keeping Al on the mat. Madril gets openings, and is always fired up on his comebacks, but Hayes is really good at stopping him in his tracks. Hayes looks to have it won with a piledriver, but decides instead to keep attacking Madril, drawing out Jose Lothario for the DQ win.

Bill Irwin vs Andre The Giant vs Terry Gordy vs King Kong Bundy vs Kerry von Erich vs Bugsy McGraw

This is a six man battle royal, with pins and submissions, with the winner claiming $5,000. Michael Hayes is accompanying Gordy, and pays dividends early, as von Erich focuses his entire attack on Gordy, going after him from the off. However, a distraction by Hayes lets Gordy shockingly eliminate him early. Andre is always a threat in battle royals, but here his gameplan is very odd – just keep strangling Terry Gordy. He just wont let go of Gordy, even when Bundy jumps on him from the second rope. He breaks the hold for a moment, then goes right back to choking Gordy. McGraw is eliminated by Bundy, leaving Andre 3-1 against the heels. They team up, FINALLY getting Andre off Gordy for a period of time. Gordy and Bundy hold Andre by the arms, to allow Irwin to attack, but Andre soon escapes, eliminating Irwin with an atomic drop. Hayes stops Andre eliminating Gordy, and Andre goes after him…climbing over the top in the process, and eliminating himself. This leaves Bundy vs Gordy, two heels and, after Bundy misses the avalanche, Gordy dropkicks him out.Very strange match, mainly dedicated to Andre choking Gordy, but quite enjoyable.

World Class Championship Wrestling 27/12/1982

Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy & David von Erich vs Mike Sharpe, Ben Sharpe & Tom Steele

David is out here to replace Buddy Roberts, who can’t get to the arena due to inclement weather, and this is for the six man tag belts. Fun stuff to start, Gordy in particular looks like a beast ploughing through the opponents, with a huge powerslam and suplex on Ben Sharpe. Iron Mike does a load of fun stooging about, cowering off, begging Hayes for a handshake then attacking the moment his back is turned. A lot of the match is based on the heel getting heat on Michael Hayes, and Hayes sells his beatdown really well. There’s a lovely bearhug locked in on Hayes by Iron Mike, Sharpe grabs him really low down which means that Hayes is held up really high in the air. Looks really impressive and as Hayes weakens, he flops as dead weight, not a bit of him touching the ground. He escapes, but this is followed by a sleeper by Steele, and Hayes looks to be done. He tags out to Gordy, who almost immediately flies into a ringpost on a corner charge. We get a melee, and in all that David hits a big knee on Mike for the win. Really good stuff.

$10,000 Battle Royal

The rules of this match state that this is a battle royal with pin, submission and over-the-top rules, until we get to the final three entrants, at which point they become eligible to climb a pole and retrieve a check for $10,000 to win. Some fun bits to this match, David von Erich is the first man eliminated, which is a bit of a shocker. Loved four men dog-piling Bundy to try and pin him, Bundy kicking out, but getting dropkicked out by Bugsy McGraw as he celebrates. McGraw’s elimination sees him get whipped to the ropes and basically throw himself out, looked pretty odd. We get down to an unlikely final three of Ken Mantell, Mike Sharpe and Brian Adidas, and they all rush for the pole, frantically scrapping. Sharpe throws Adidas to the floor, eliminating him, but this allows Mantell to climb the pole without hindrance and claim the money. Always enjoy a battle royal, this was fun.

WCW Great American Bash 1992

Deciding to take on so many different projects in the past year has meant that I've slacked on writing up my favourite year in wrestling history: 1992 WCW. Even more criminal when you consider that I've taken too long to get to this show - arguably this is the best PPV of all time. Seven matches, and the worst match is merely "decent". 

Jushin Liger & Brian Pillman vs Ricky Steamboat & Nikita Koloff

Really fun match, worked really evenly with momentum shifting quickly between the two teams. It’s worked really nicely though, as both teams use quick tags to justify the momentum switches, and I like little touches like Liger sprinting for his corner first chance he gets when he’s been in trouble. Really fun to see Steamboat working big against two light heavyweights. He blasts Pillman with a big clothesline, nails a string of backbreakers on Liger before planting him with a big powerslam. Some really nice offensive runs here too, at one point Liger hits Steamboat with a perfect moonsault, a tombstone and a flip senton, getting a close two off each move. The end sees Steamboat roll through a Pillman crossbody to win.

Hiroshi Hase & Shinya Hashimoto vs the Freebirds

A bit of a styles clash, but an interesting one. This feels a bit like a battle of the interesting strikes, as Hashimoto nails a lot of nasty looking kicks, Hayes nails a load of fun punches and Hase has a range of chops. Loved the gutbuster Hase hits. Hayes hits a pair of beautiful left hands to make the hot tag, but Garvin gets caught with a sneaky Hashimoto behind the ref’s back, and Hase hits the Northern Lights to win.

Barry Windham & Dustin Rhodes vs Steve Austin & Rick Rude

This is such a great match. What you really have here is four guys absolutely on top of their game putting on a classic tag match, including a really great heat section. All four guys put in some really solid looking blows, but it’s not just the execution that makes them so good, but the timing. They all pick the exact right time to hit each other for maximum effect. Early on, Windham belts Austin across the face, leading to a terrific sell as Austin throws himself out of the ring. You know a match is fun when Austin and Rhodes manage to work a fun little section based around an abdominal stretch. The heat is worked on Windham, including an unlikely Rude missile dropkick. Loved how close Windham got to making the tag on multiple occasions, and when he falls back and finally makes the tag, both the crowd and Dustin just explode. Things break down and Dustin hits a massive top rope lariat on Austin to win. This was a belter.

Steve Williams & Terry Gordy vs Nikita Koloff & Ricky Steamboat

This was really neat, loved the opening stages with all four guys going to the mat, especially as Steamboat and Koloff equit themselves admirably. MVC have the advantage of having not wrestled previously this show, and they both have a power advantage over Steamboat which starts to slowly manifest. Though they match up evenly, gradually the power moves wear Steamboat down, and a running charge into the corner damages his ribs, giving a focal point for Williams to hit with a huge backbreaker. When Steamboat makes the tag to Nikita, he’s not even able to stand on the apron, and when Koloff misses a shoulderblock, you know they’re in big trouble. More heat is worked on Koloff, who gets to tag in Steamboat only for Williams to catch him from the top rope and hit an Oklahoma Stampede version of a spinebuster for the win.

Dustin Rhodes & Barry Windham vs Hiroshi Hase & Shinya Hashimoto

Another match that started with really nice matwork, it’s really neat watching guys like Dustinand Windham showing what they can do. Loved how a lot of the reversals felt natural, all stemming from shifts in body position and leverage. Rhodes becomes the face in peril, gradually getting worn down by Hashimoto kicks until you realise too late that he’s in trouble. Hase and Hashimoto work a fun heat on him until Hase misses a top rope knee drop for the hot tag. Lovely ending sees Hase lose attention of who the legal man is, and get blasted with a Windham lariat as he runs the ropes with Rhodes. Very good stuff.

Big Van Vader vs Sting

This was a great example of a champion putting over his challenger in an absolutely dominating fashion, whilst still keeping himself strong. Vader is allowed to totally dominate Sting in large sections of the match, blasting him in the corner at the start, no-selling a clothesline and a crossbody, whilst later in the match he even puts Sting in his own finisher, the Scorpion Deathlock. Loved how he applied it too, hooking up one of Sting’s legs, then grabbing the other as Sting used it to bat him away. Yet despite this, Sting is still able to look strong in defeat. His offensive flurries look great, full of energy, and he gets to show off remarkable strength. Nice suplex, big back suplex and an impressive Samoan Drop all look great, and Sting sells the exhaustion nicely each time. Even though Vader is dominant, Sting looks to have it won twice: a German suplex only gets two due to a ref bump, whilst it’s when Sting is in control that he loses it by accident. A Stinger Splash hits Vader, but Sting hits his head on the ringpost. From here, Sting is out on his feet and a powerbomb gives Vader the win. Really terrific bout.

Steve Williams & Terry Gordy vs Barry Windham & Dustin Rhodes

This is the third 20-odd minute match for Windham and Rhodes on this show, and it’s to their credit that they don’t look exhausted throughout here. The opening is pretty even and they don’t show obvious signs of fatigue. The giveaway is how it gets easier and easier for Williams and Gordy to take control of whichever opponent is in the ring. This is a bout with three face-in-peril sections, yet as with the Sting/Vader match, you still feel like the faces could win the match. Loved how fired up Windham was when he makes his hot tag, hitting a lovely lariat on Gordy and a beautiful floatover suplex on Williams. It’s also worth noting how both teams make use of ring positioning to their advantages and in totally natural ways. Gordy makes a tag by flinging his arms backward whilst in a sleeper, letting Williams attack an unsuspecting Dustin unawares, whilst Rhodes later makes a hot tag by stretching his long frame when taken down with a drop toehold. Towards the end, Dustin takes the hot tag and is put in peril in mere seconds, showing the control Williams and Gordy have on the match. There’s a great nearfall as Barry dropkicks Rhodes on top of Williams during a Stampede attempt, but Williams soon turns Dustin 360 degrees with a clothesline for the win. Superb stuff.

WCCW 13/11/1982

The Fabulous Freebirds vs Frank Dusek & Killer Tim Brooks

Pretty decent match, liked how well these two teams matched up. There’s some little touches that indicate a bit of hate, like Brooks biting Hayes’ hand early on, which goes with the vicious brawling that occurs every time the two are in the ring together. The Freebirds are the more fluid team, loved some of their early quick tags and teamwork. Gordy is briefly isolated, but makes the tag after a big back suplex on Dusek, and the Freebirds win as Gordy holds Dusek in a fireman’s carry, leaving him prone to a Hayes elbow to the head.

The Great Kabuki vs The Samoan & Sal Olivares

Very similar to the Kabuki squash on the last episode, as he blitzes both opponents with thrust kicks. Like before, the Samoan is left alone when his partner falls to the Kabuki legbreaker, and he gets a brief run  before he falls through the ropes and takes the legbreaker for the submission.

Kerry von Erich vs The Destroyer II

Nice little Kerry showcase. They work a brief mat stint, before Kerry ups the pace. Pair of nice kneedrops give von Erich control and he finishes with the discus punch.

Bugsy McGraw vs Checkmate

There were bits of this I liked but the ending was very frustrating. McGraw strikes me as someone I wont like as much when he’s not facing Checkmate, but he works well in this type of match, as he sells the frustration of not being able to deal with the mat smarts of his opponent. Checkmate will roll into a ball, annoying McGraw and luring him in so that he can grab an arm or a leg. Checkmate can also look vicious, hitting some nice headbutts, and McGraw does get to drop a nice elbow when he finally unravels the knot of Checkmate. Unfortunately, the ending makes Checkmate look foolish, as he lures McGraw to the apron, but seemingly has no plan as he gets put in a bearhug for the double count out. Weak end, but I enjoyed the meat of this.

World Class Championship Wrestling 11/11/1982

Bugsy McGraw & Al Madril vs Checkmate & Bill Irwin

The early stages of this, with McGraw working a pointless and not-very-good mat section with Irwin, weren’t great, though I did like McGraw actually tripping up his opponent on a drop down. Madril becomes face-in-peril, and Checkmate works the arm. Lovely little bit where Checkmate uses his wristlock on Madril to kick the ribs, knowing Madril can’t block it. Heels control Madril nicely, quickly tagging in and out when Al gets any kind of hope spot. They throw Madril to the floor, but this is a mistake as it gives him plenty of time to recover. After a brief flurry by a hot-tagged McGraw, Madril locked in a figure-four on Irwin, but Checkmate stomps on his throat to earn the pin. This is quickly overturned by another ref, and we get a brawl to finish. Fun stuff.

Destroyer II vs David von Erich

Very short match, with David controlling on the mat after some fun misdirection on a drop down. Von Erich hits a big leaping knee to the face, drops a series of knees and hits a proto-Vader Bomb to win.

The Great Kabuki & Magic Dragon vs the Fabulous Freebirds

Decent tag action, with the Freebirds controlling early with lots of quick tags. Dragon is portrayed the weak member of his team, as Gordy has far more difficulty with Kabuki than he does with Dragon, before Hayes blitzes Dragon with strikes. The Freebirds tag continuity allows them to string together 3-4 moves on each tag to give them control. The heels do get some brief heat on Gordy, but Dragon backflips out of the corner into a Gordy dropkick and a big elbow gives the Freebirds the win.

Kerry von Erich vs Killer Tim Brooks

Really quick sprint, but this was the match of the show. Brooks attacks before the match, and Kerry has to put on a headscissors to keep Brooks subdued long enough to enable him to take off his robe. Brooks locks on a big choke after ducking the discus punch, really liked the commentary highlighting that the punch forces you to briefly turn your back on your opponent, which helped explain it. Kerry gets knees on a slingshot splash, but Brooks instantly hits knees on a splash of his own, and a sunset flip wins it for Kerry.

World Class Championship Wrestling 01/11/1982

The Great Kabuki vs The Samoan & Raul Castro

This is a handicap elimination match. The Samoan at least takes the fight to Kabuki, whilst Castro is basically useless, hesitant to attack from any angle. Kabuki looks good here, nice precise strikes and I loved the backwards roll into a body scissors. Kabuki forces a submission from Castro with two leg scissor knee drops. The Samoan actually fares better without his useless partner, but misses a top rope headbutt and Kabuki drops two more knee drops for the submission.

The Fabulous Freebirds vs Gran Markus II & the Destroyer

Before we’re anywhere the match starting, we get an awesome brawl as Bill Irwin and King Kong Bundy attack the Freebirds. The whole locker rooms seems to empty and the ring is filled with guys brawling. Eventually, order is restored and the match can start. It’s pretty one sided, as the Freebirds control their masked opponents. Hayes is face-in-peril for approximately 30 seconds before he hits a back suplex on the Destroyer and tags out to Gordy. Spike piledriver on Gran Markus gets the win. Fun squash, but the brawl beforehand was excellent.

Al Madril & Bugsy McGraw vs Checkmate & Magic Dragon

The opening sections, with McGraw facing Checkmate, is pretty entertaining. Checkmate constantly goes to the mat, curled in a ball, which seems to baffle McGraw who paws at his like a confused wild animal. Checkmate’s constant reverting to the ball state seems to be frustrating both McGraw and the crowd. There’s a fun spot where McGraw dives into the corner to save Madril on an Irish whip attempt, but when Magic Dragon tries to do the same, Madril changes direction and whips Checkmate into the opposite corner. The heels work over Madril to make him face-in-peril, and though he tags out to McGraw, he ends up getting tagged in pretty quickly. It looks at first like it was too quick, as Dragon beats him down, but Madril nails a crossbody to pick up the win. This was a really fun match, the two teams played off each other nicely.

Kevin von Erich vs Wild Bill Irwin

Feels a bit one-sided, considering how well Irwin was presented earlier, but I enjoyed this. Von Erich is all motion, constantly on guard. Loved his quick little leg sweep when he catches Irwin off guard. Kevin’s running forearms into the corner look terrific, really goes in full pelt. Irwin counters a headscissors attempt by dropping Von Erich neck-first on the top rope. Irwin sells his ribs as hurting even when in control, which gives Kevin openings for hope spots, and the hesitation allows Kevin to lock in an abdominal stretch. Irwin takes out the ref whilst in the hold to give KVE the win by DQ, but despite a cheap ending, this was a fun little sprint.

WCW Beach Blast 1992

So, it turns out that I'm incapable of reading dates properly (blame the American date style on the WWE Network), and this event actually occurred before the Clash that I reviewed last year. (albeit only by 2 days). If you read that, just pretend you read this first...

Scotty Flamingo vs Brian Pillman

This is for Pillman’s light-heavyweight title, and is in that period where top rope moves were banned in WCW. Thus, this isn’t quite the highflying affair Pillman’s bouts with Liger or Zenk were. Instead, a lot of this is mat based, with Pillman in particular working over the arm of Flamingo. Indeed, it’s when he forgets the top rope rule that things go awry, as he goes up only to remember he can’t do anything and Flamingo throws him off. Flamingo’s control isn’t particularly flashy, and instead sees him trying to wear down Pillman. No danger of any face pops for Flamingo. Pillman seems to find it hard to make any comebacks, as Flamingo always seems able to cut him off. A snap powerslam and a handful of tights get a close nearfall for Scotty. Pillman does make a comeback, but crashes and burns as he tries a crossbody to the ramp, as Flamingo moves causing him to face plant on the walkway. This costs Pillman massively, as a shitty kneedrop catches him crawling back in and Flamingo picks up the clean title win. Bit of a shocker, but a decent bout. Going 15+ minutes was maybe a bit much for Flamingo, but they just about pulled it off.

Ron Simmons vs Taylor Made Man

Bit more of a sprint here, they cut a quick tempo from the off. A nice early sequence establishes both men’s role in the bout – Taylor throws Simmons through the ropes to the ramp by suckering him in and grabbing the tights, whilst Simmons is able to bounce back with his explosive power, press slamming Taylor back into the ring. This explosiveness does cost Simmons, however, as Taylor avoids a big charge, and Simmons flies through the ropes to the ramp. Taylor works some heat on Ron, but gets caught in a spinebuster, and from there is powerless to stop Simmons blitzing him with power moves, culminating in a powerslam for three. Quick little match, but one that told a decent story – Simmons was the explosive, stronger athlete that Taylor needed to use his cunning to beat, but when Simmons got on a roll, he was unstoppable.

Greg Valentine vs Marcus Bagwell

Nice competitive squash for Valentine, basically telling the story of grizzled veteran outsmarting and outworking the rookie. Valentine doesn’t go easy on the younger man, blocking a hiptoss with a clothesline that gives a nice thud. Bagwell gets a small flurry, but misses a kneedrop that gives Valentine a focal point for his offence. Valentine is all over the leg, setting up for the figure four. I liked the manner of Bagwell’s comeback, as rather than Valentine missing a move a Bagwell being fine, Bagwell is slow to recover and has to keep countering Valentine’s moves. However, Bagwell jars the leg on a leapfrog and Valentine locks in the figure four to win.

Cactus Jack vs Sting

Proper good brawl here, both guys go all out here with a real high tempo. Sting controls early on, but his excitable manner causes problems as he goes for a Stinger Splash too early, hitting the ropes as Jack moves. A lot of this match is fought on the floor, with a Jack neckbreaker giving a big thud and a sunset flip being a ludicrous bump. Like Jack locking in a body scissors to hurt Sting’s ribs, with the commentary highlighting how Sting had hurt his ribs fighting Vader. Sting’s comeback of a sudden back suplex on the concrete looked nasty, and it felt like a plausible desperation comeback. Jack misses a diving elbow, and Sting hits a diving clothesline to the ramp to win.

Rick Rude vs Ricky Steamboat

This is a 30 minute ironman bout, and it’s really fucking great. Steamboat hits Rude with a gutbuster from the get-go, and from that point on Rude is struggling with his ribs. Steamboat works over these ribs for the next 8 minutes, constant focus with some nice looking strikes and a really high angle Boston crab. Then, fantastically, Rude catches him with a knee to the face on a corner charge, and is able to pin him for the first fall. Just felt like a believable knockout blow and it changes the flow of the bout. Rude nails a quick Rude Awakening to go 2-0 up. Loved Rude hitting a top rope kneedrop, which earns him a DQ, but gives him an easy fall to go 3-1 ahead. Rude wisely goes to a Camel Clutch to kill off some time, the wrestling equivalent of a footballer playing the ball into the corner towards the end of a game. Rude goes for a tombstone, but Steamboat is able to reverse it and pick up a fall for 3-2. Great reversal, as Steamboat makes it look like a real struggle, forcing Rude backwards with his legs and powering into the reversal. Best I’ve seen that move look. Suddenly, Steamboat gets a backslide and evens up the falls 3-3. Both guys looks like they’re struggling at this point, every move feels like it could end the bout. A Steamboat attempt at the Rude Awakening sees Rude need to put his foot on the rope to survive. Rude locks on a sleeper, really good one as he forces Steamboat to hold his body weight for several minutes. Not a part of Rude’s body is touching the mat. Steamboat is almost gone with less than 90 seconds to go, but is able to get to his feet and we get the Hart/Piper reversal to give Steamboat the lead with less than a minute left. Rude is frantic, hitting repeat clotheslines to try and get an evener, but Steamboat survives and wins. Such a great ending, so exciting and that’s considering it’s a sleeper held for several minutes. Really terrific bout.

Bobby Eaton, Steve Austin & Arn Anderson vs Nikita Koloff, Barry Windham & Dustin Rhodes

Fun 6 man tag, which provides a nice change of pace between two 30 minute matches. Ole Anderson is the referee here. The faces dominate the early goings – loved Windham’s Japanese armdrag from the turnbuckles, almost looked like a proto-Spanish Fly – until Arn rams Dustin’s head into Eaton’s to take control. Loved how this also put Eaton out of commission for a moment, meaning Arn had to tag in Austin. The heat on Dustin is predictably really solid, with a few hope spots nicely interspersed, but for the main Dustin is contained to the heels corner of the ring. Loved Arn stamping on Rhodes’ head, playing off the clash with Eaton. Dug the payback spot as Dustin rams Arn’s head into Eaton, which gives him a chance to come back. Hot tag is made to Windham, and it all breaks down. Windham hits the superplex, but Arn comes off the top rope to break it up, earning a DQ.

The Steiner Brothers vs Steve Williams & Terry Gordy

This goes the full 30 minutes for the time limit draw, but takes you on quite the journey to get there. Real full on battle, with the early stages worked primarily on the mat. Jim Ross is keen to put over the collegiate background of the competitors to show why these are so closely fought. The Rick and Williams sections are nicely competitive, like watching two big bulls colliding. Rick hits a great overhead belly to belly and a lovely big clothesline. All four guys hit big suplexes, all of which looked good. Eventually, the MVC manage to isolate Scott Steiner and work over his leg (and this fits in nicely with the Clash two days later, where Scott's knee injury is really played up). Lovely little touches like Gordy holding Scott in a leglock whilst Williams keeps punching him in the knee. Even when Scott is crawling for the tag, they yank him back by the leg to further injure the leg. Rick eventually gets the hot tag, but his run of offence is brief before the MVC take over and now HE’s the FIP. The time limit is ticking closer, and with Scott out of action, it now feels like a case of seeing if Rick can survive to the time limit. With minutes remaining, Rick is able to escape the clutches of Doc and Gordy and make the tag to a recuperated Scott, who runs riot. He hits the Frankensteiner on Gordy, JUST as time expires. Really great match, built up nicely to an exciting ending.

WCW Clash of the Champions XIX

Been a while since I worked on the WCW 92 project, thought it best to get back on board. All the matches here are part of the first round of the NWA tag titles tournament.

Ricky Steamboat & Nikita Koloff vs Joe & Dean Malenko

Decent opener, albeit with a little sloppiness. Nikita is really positioned as the game-changer here, with the Malenko’s not able to counter his strength advantage. He impressively catches Dean on a crossbody and, though knocked down by a Joe dropkick, he press slams Dean out of the ring on the cover, turning defence to offence. Joe is responsible for the sloppiest moments in the match, awkwardly dropping Steamboat to give his team the advantage and going down too quickly on a Steamer facebuster which leads to the hot tag. Dean was more impressive, really liked the way he held onto Steamboat’s wrists and feet when slamming him to the mat, transitioning straight away into a submission hold. Koloff is a beast on the hot tag and lays out Joe with the sickle to win.

Rick Rude & Steve Austin vs Tom Zenk & Marcus Bagwell

I thought this was a better laid out match than the opener, as they worked it exactly how an upper card heel vs midcard face team should be. There are moments of hope for the faces, but the Dangerous Alliance team are too overpowering and too experienced to be in danger for long. Loved Austin’s vicious blows to Bagwell in the corner early on, and Rude no selling Bagwell’s blows to the abs was perfect character work. The Alliance work heat on Zenk, maintaining control by cutting the ring in half. Bagwell gets a brief run off the hot tag, but misses a dropkick and quickly gets dispatched with the Rude Awakening. Good hierarchy establishing bout.

Steve Williams & Terry Gordy vs Larry & Jeff O’Day

Infamous squash, and one that hasn’t become any less entertaining with time. Amusingly, it’s not the younger Jeff O’Day who gets destroyed, but his oddly-skeletal father who gets folded up with a Gordy back-suplex, hilariously has a double-clothesline attempt no-sold and instead gets double-tackled to the mat and then gets decimated with an Oklahoma Stampede for the win.

Barry Windham & Dustin Rhodes vs Arn Anderson & Bobby Eaton

Windham and Rhodes were my favourite tag team as a kid, and it’s nice to be reminded why here. Loved Windham’s beautiful right hand to Anderson early on here, and Arn sells it with the perfect mix of pain and bewilderment. Lots of lovely little touches in this match to make this match stand out in a card of tag matches. Dug Eaton stopping short on a Dustin leapfrog to punch Rhodes in the stomach, and the sequence of Dustin grabbing the ropes to block an Arn DDT, only to be in the right position for Eaton to level him with a right hand. Dustin takes a big spill from the ring on a missed crossbody, which looks as good here as when he still does it 24 years later(!) There’s a great nearfall off an Anderson spinebuster as Rhodes is face in peril. Love the twist on traditional tag formula, as Rhodes never makes the hot tag, instead taking advantage of an Eaton mistake to hit a quick bulldog for the win. This was pretty great.

The Freebirds (Michael Hayes & Jimmy Garvin) vs The Silver Kings (El Texano and Silver King)

This, however, is very much not great. The Kings are only referred to here as Silver Kings #1 and #2. An absolute clash of styles here, and Hayes especially doesn’t seem to be up for selling anything. This is typified by the Kings hitting Total Elimination on him, which Hayes awkwardly bumps for, then goes right back on offence. A Silver King drop toehold somehow ends up with Hayes on top, and this is such a mess. The end sees the crowd begging for the DDT from the Freebirds, but Hayes instead gets a small package for the win. Rubbish.

Jushin Liger & Brian Pillman vs Chris Benoit & Beef Wellington

Interesting match here, feels a bit ahead of its time. This is a very back-and-forth lightheavyweight tag match, with neither side really taking a prolonged period of control. WCW’s top rope ban was relaxed for the tournament, and it feels like these guys are taking full advantage of being unleashed, as they come off the top and to the outside on a regular basis (with Jim Ross and Jesse Ventura constantly bringing up the lack of outside padding). Wellington heels it up slightly by hurling Pillman over the top behind the refs back, but misses a plancha. Benoit and Pillman share the best exchanges of the match, first with Pillman hitting an insane back suplex from the top rope, then with both guys exchanging nasty sounding chops on the floor. Wellington is the weakest link here, as it does feel like he’s sandbagging Liger on occasion, with the ending seeing an awkward looking Liger slam, before a beautiful moonsault for the win.

The Headhunters vs Hiroshi Hase & Akira Nogami

Apparently, this was supposed to be the massive fat guy Headhunters, but they couldn’t make it, so we get Arn Anderson and Bob Cook in masks. You’d think this would be a squash, but this is actually worked pretty evenly, albeit with the Japanese team getting the flashier moves. With name guys in disguise, it’s always fun to see if you can spot any noticeable mannerism, and yes, Bob Cook still has a great punch here. This is pretty heatless, but I loved Akira’s leaping enzuigiri, the swank thrust kick by Hase and the winning pinfall coming from stereo suplexes, Nogami with a German and Hase with a Northern Lights.

Steve Williams & Terry Gordy vs the Steiner Brothers

The Steiners were due to face a Puerto Rican team before facing Doc and Gordy in the next round, but the Puerto Rican’s are apparently injured (which Doc and Gordy unsubtly take credit for), so the Steiners get a bye and we get this second round match up early. The initial stages probably aren’t what the crowd as expecting, as all four go to the mat, jockeying for position and takedowns. Rick hits a huge overhead suplex on Doc out of nowhere to a big pop. Williams slaps Steiner, who responds with a barrage of punches to another, bigger, pop. Things move on a big quicker from here, with Doc and Gordy controlling Scott. Love the double team of Gordy dropping Scott from his shoulders onto Doc’s knee. They initially focus on Scott’s back before moving to his leg. Scott makes what we assume is the hot tag to Rick, who has a great brawl in the ring with Gordy. Rick tries a cover, but is informed by the ref that he’d not seen the tag, and Scott is still legal. A worn out Scott is outside the ring, and Doc clips his leg from behind. Lovely bit of misdirection. Back in, Scott tries a belly-to-belly on Williams, but Gordy clips his leg out again, and Doc lands on top for the win. Big shock victory, but I love how logical this all was. Williams and Gordy outsmarted the Steiners and simply had the better gameplan.

Best of Mitsuharu Misawa Vol 1

Mitsuharu Misawa is one of those blind spots for me, one of those feted guys I can tell is good, but hasn't yet managed to click with me. In a bid to resolve this, I decided to pick up the first volume of IVP Videos' Best of Misawa series, with the idea that seeing where he came from might help make it all click for me. This disc includes some of his Tiger Mask II stuff and some clips of matches against the likes of Curt Hennig and Ted DiBiase. It also includes footage of him taking his mask off in a tag match to shed the Tiger Mask persona. The matches below are the full matches on the disc and honestly, things are starting to come together for me.

Tiger Mask II vs La Fiera

I know this is a Misawa comp, but this bout is all about the greatness of La Fiera. Before the bell, he’s all cocky, promising to rip off Tiger Mask’s mask, but when the bell rings and Mask unleashes a string of kicks, he’s cowering in the ropes. Fiera bumps big for Misawa here, and stooges wonderfully for him on the outside. I love the surprise in his yells as Mask takes him up for a slam. Tiger Mask has some nice fluid offence, but looks a little hesitant in other places, running the ropes quite gingerly. Fiera hits a lovely cross body to the floor to show his offensive chops too, followed by a great frog splash. He soon takes another big bump to the floor though, followed by a huge tope by Mask. Mask hits a springboard crossbody, and I adore the way Fiera is looking away until the last second when the crossbody hits, adds a sense of realism. He tries for a slap, but Tiger Mask ducks and hits the Tiger suplex for a win. Loved this.

Tiger Mask II vs Dynamite Kid

Dynamite is so jacked compared to Misawa here. He just looks like a beast in comparison. It’s hard to shake the notion that Dynamite is just toying with his opponent during the early matwork here, and even when Mask gets a run of offence, it doesn’t feel enough to take DK out. Dynamite had obviously had plenty of experience in fighting the original Tiger Mask, so when Misawa tries a tombstone here, Kid is able to reverse and hit his own quite easily. His power advantage means he’s able to easily plant Tiger with a back suplex from being headlocked. Tiger Mask crashes and burns on a pescado, and it feels like Dynamite could finish this at any time. However, he doesn’t and Misawa is able to hit him with a back suplex on the floor, which causes both to get counted out. This really helped Tiger Mask look tough in just surviving Dynamite here.

Tiger Mask II vs Jumbo Tsuruta

This is for the NWA International Heavyweight title, and Mask is significantly outsized by Jumbo. This necessitates his opening game plan, wearing Jumbo down with a headlock. Jumbo tries shinbreakers and firing Mask into the ropes, but he refuses to let go of the hold. Eventually, Jumbo decides the best way to break it is by folding Tiger Mask up with a big back suplex. A big knee gets 2, and it feels like this burst of offence makes Tiger Mask realise he needs to change tack. A pair of somewhat milky looking kicks send Jumbo to the floor, and Tiger Mask strikes, with two big dives to the outside. A German suplex gets 2 for Tiger Mask, but a frog splash hits only knees. Tiger goes for quick pin attempts, with roll ups and ranas, but gets caught on a second rana and levelled with a stun gun. Jumbo hits a backdrop suplex for two, and another for the win. Really fun cat-and-mouse match, with a really exciting end run once Tiger Mask went for broke.

Mitsuharu Misawa vs Jumbo Tsuruta

Curiosuly, this match wasn’t listed as being on this disc, which is odd as it’s the best match on here. Here, Misawa isn’t just trying to survive and get flash pins, he’s hitting shots as big as Jumbo. Here, Tsuruta goes on the offensive early with a big boot and clothesline, but gets sent to the floor, where Misawa follows him with a dropkick from the apron. Jumbo look shaken, and seems to change the pace, as they work holds on the mat, only with Misawa peppering a few slaps in on the breaks. Jumbo goes on the offensive again, but Misawa is able to stay in it, and you get a real sense of him trying to chop down this big tree, hitting missile dropkicks to down the big guy. Misawa gets stun gunned off a crossbody in a nice callback to the previous match, and I love how Jumbo’s size means even a simple kneedrop looks brutal. Jumbo hits a massive top rope leaping knee, but gets sent outside on a forearm strike and Misawa goes for broke, with a huge dive to the floor. Inside a bridging cradle gets a close 2 and the crowd really seem to believe Misawa can win. Has to be said, the crowd are HOT all match. Backdrop suplex attempt by Jumbo sees Misawa push off the top turnbuckle with his feet to land on top. Having endured 2 big lariats earlier, Misawa uses a flipping headbutt from the top to take out Jumbo’s arm, prompting Jumbo to hurl himself at the ropes for a big knee, but miss, and the end feels nigh. Jumbo uses on last effort to land on top on a Misawa backdrop suplex, but Misawa rolls through and cradles for the win. Just a massive war of attrition, felt like a real breakthrough victory for Misawa.

Mitsuharu Misawa vs Terry Gordy

After the sheer emotional rollercoaster of the last match, this feels a bit of a let down in comparison, good as it is. The early stages see Gordy grinding down Misawa on the mat, dropping knees on him. It takes Misawa ages to get started, and even when he busts Gordy open with an enzuigiri, he blows his advantage by trying to Tiger Driver him on the floor, which Gordy escapes. Gordy always seems to have something extra in his locker, like he’s prepared when a move doesn’t work. He tries to powerbomb Misawa on the floor, but when he’s clearly not getting him up, he pushes Misawa away and hits a big clothesline. He does this throughout the match, which allows him to press his advantage. When his Rock-level Sharpshooter gets broken by a rope break, he drags Misawa to the middle of the ring to apply it again. Misawa is worn down, and only being close to the ropes stops him being pinned by a powerbomb. Misawa hits some spinkicks and a sudden Tiger Driver for two, and rolls through a Gordy crossbody for another two, in a callback to his Jumbo victory. Misawa is finally in control and, though a German suplex only gets two, a huge forearm smash in enough to just about keep Gordy down for the win.

IWA Japan King Of The Deathmatch 1995

Tiger Jeet Singh vs Mr Gannosuke
Odd to see how thin Gannosuke was before he bulked up in later years. This is also the most entertaining thing about this match, which is otherwise appalling. This is supposed to be a chain match, but Singh assaults Gannosuke with his sword before the match and embarks upon one of those dull brawls where Singh walks Gannosuke around and throws him into things and hitting him with the occasional chair. This drags on for minutes before Singh decides to choke Gannosuke with the chain. He lets go, then chokes Gannosuke on a barbed wire board for the submission win. Gannosuke’s post-match vomit is the only entertaining thing here.

Terry Funk vs Leatherface
I quite like the fact we get a pre-match promo from Leatherface, the psychotic killer from the Texas Chainsaw Massacre…being very polite and respectful towards Funk. It’s another chain match and the match is far better than the opener, but the way it’s laid out makes no sense. Within a minute of the bell ringing, Leatherface has hit a moonsault on Funk. 30 seconds later, he throws Funk from the ring onto a barbed wire board and, boom, the big spot of the match is gone. This is something to build towards, and it’s done in less than 90 seconds. That said, the rest of the match is still more enjoyable than the Jeet Singh debacle. There are some odd moments (Leatherface attacks Funk with a chainsaw, drawing no blood), but there is still fun to be had. Leatherface takes a nasty bump onto a table as Funk prevents a top rope splash by simply pulling him to the floor by the chain and both men climbing a chainlink fence to fight at the top is odd, but enjoyable. Back inside, Funk wraps his left hand with the chain and punches Leatherface out for the 3 count.

Cactus Jack vs Terry Gordy
The first match thus far that actually tries to build around the gimmick, in this case a big tray full of tacks in the middle of the ring. We actually get Gordy teasing putting Jack in the tacks, first with a hiptoss from the corner that narrowly misses, then with a bulldog attempt that Jack blocks. Jack blocks several more attempts to throw him in the tacks, but isn’t able to avoid getting thrown from the top rope to the floor in a nasty bump. Outside the ring, Gordy piledrives Jack through a table, then inside finally gets Jack onto the tacks, first stamping his face into the tray, then throwing him down with a nasty looking powerbomb. A 2nd on the mat gets a two. Jack rebounds by throwing a handful of tacks into Gordy’s face and hitting the double-arm DDT onto the tacks for the win.

Shoji Nakamaki vs Hiroshi Ono
Essentially, both are pretty ordinary looking guys in t-shirt and jeans. They seem a bit less ordinary moments later when they both no-sell being hit with a barbed wire bat. Nakamaki whacks Ono headfirst on a table and then proceeds to walk him around the stadium for a bit until they reach another ring. Ono rebounds with a few wrestling moves, nailing a side Russian legsweep and a shit uranage. A top rope clothesline gets two. Nakamaki ducks a clothesline and nails a big one of his own. He then casually walks Ono to another ring, before the two fight over the tray of tacks. Nakamaki tries a bulldog, but Ono blocks and hits to belly-to-back suplexes onto the tacks, leaving a circle of tacks sticking out of Nakamaki’s head. Ono tries a third, but Nakamaki lands on top of him then powerbombs him onto the tacks for a two. What we would now call a Skull Crushing Finale onto the tacks earns Nakamaki the win. Oddly entertaining.


Takashi Okano vs. Flying Kid Ichihara
This is for Ichihara’s WWA Light Heavyweight title. It’s also pretty heavily clipped, as I think the full match goes 13 minutes, whilst it barely goes 3 here. Not that I’m complaining, as this is pretty pedestrian. Not bad, just a touch bland, though Ichihara looks pretty smooth, hitting a nice moonsault press and dropping Okano on his head with a belly-to-back suplex. Okano doesn’t get much offence, making it even more surprising when he rolls through a rana for the win.

The Iceman vs. Kamikaze
You know when you see a local indy show, and a chubby guy is wearing a mask in an attempt to convince you he’s a highflier? Well that’s Iceman here, whose paunch is noticeable through his bodysuit, In fact, with his long hair sticking out, he looks like John Zandig filming a remake of the video for “I Found Out” by the Pigeon Detectives. He’s not very good either, whiffing an armdrag over the top early doors and hitting a clumsy pescado. This is another clipped match, but we get to see some decent offence from Kamikaze, who hits a nice tope. Iceman misses an appalling looking knee drop from the top, but bumbles his way into a reverse pin to win.

Terry Funk vs. Tiger Jeet Singh
Round two of the tournament, and guess who does the most bumping? This makes the first Jeet Singh match look like Savage/Steamboat in comparison. The entire first 5 or so minutes consists of Singh hitting Funk with his sword outside the ring, pausing for 5 seconds, then doing it again. They finally get back into the ring, only for Singh to knock Funk off the apron into...something, as the crack camera team entirely miss the bump. Another angle eventually shows Funk lying in a tray of glass, getting hit by Singh. Finally, Funk hits a head butt for his first bit of offence and goes for the spinning toehold, only to meet Cactus Jack interference. Jack goes to hit Funk with Singh’s sword, only for Funk to duck, causing Singh to take the blow and get pinned for 3. Utter shite.

Cactus Jack vs. Shoji Nakamaki
This is the other end of the bumping scale. In his first book, Foley points out that Nakamaki was known as the “Danger Man” since, although he couldn’t wrestle, he was willing to take a lot of abuse. The result is that we get two guys trying to out bump each other. It’s close, but I’d say Nakamaki takes the worst of it, taking the nastiest bump when Jack covers his prone body with a bed of nails, then hits an elbow from the ring apron to drive the nails into the Danger Man. Jack does a similar move elsewhere in the match, hanging Nakamaki on the second rope and placing a bed of barbed wire onto his opponent, before crashing into him with a flying knee. Jack takes a fair bit of abuse too and, whilst the match is frequently sloppy (Nakamaki can’t bump very well, so sandbags Jack on occasion), it is at least enjoyable. Jack wins with the double-arm DDT onto the barbed wire.

The Headhunters vs. El Texano & Silver King
King and Texano are defending the IWA tag titles here. The Mexican team fare pretty badly early doors, getting overpowered by the huge Headhunters. The Headhunters are pretty fun to watch as big, fat highfliers, crushing El Texano with a big splash/leg drop combo. Texano and King try to use their speed to take over, both hitting topes on one Hunter, only for the other to follow with the biggest tope of them all. There is a section of control by Texano and King, but this is really all about the size and power of the Headhunters, who pick up the win and the titles with a top rope power bomb.

Dan Severn vs. Tarzan Goto
This is for Severn’s NWA title. The main theme running through this match is that both guys have a preferred environment to fight in and, if they get their opponent there, they’ll win. Hence Goto slaps Severn and goes to the outside, trying to lure Severn to brawl outside, only for Severn to sit on the ring ropes and gesture for Goto to get in the ring for a beating. Goto actually does a decent job at getting Severn onto the mat, but Severn soon reverses and takes control. They roll outside, where Goto smashes a bottle to get a weapon, which Severn blocks with a chair. They continue to brawl, decimating rows of chairs, and Goto gets the upper hand, hurling chair after chair onto a prone Severn. Goto heads back into the ring and we get the awesome site of Severn emerging from a pile of chairs, eyes full of fury and hate, ready to fuck Goto up. Goto does manages to subdue him in the ring by using a chair, but Severn takes control and locks in a rear naked choke for the tapout win. Good match.

Cactus Jack vs. Terry Funk
The tournament final is a Barbed Wire Rope, Exploding Barbed Wire Boards & Exploding Ring Time Bomb Death Match, which essentially means the ring will blow up in ten minutes. Being the best two workers in the tournament, this is pretty darn good. I especially loved the way that Funk dragged a board into the middle of the ring at the start, essentially daring Jack to come at him. They also wisely build to the board explosions, with Funk teetering over a board for ages before finally getting knocked onto it for a big pop. I also like the way that, even though the explosives on a board have been used up, they both know that whacking their opponent with a board of barbed wire looks fucking painful, with Jack covering Funk with a board and dropping an elbow being particularly painful-looking. Tiger Jeet Singh makes an unwelcome return to save Jack from a spinning toehold. Jack hits the double-arm DDT for two and hits another as the ring announcer starts a ten second countdown for the explosion. Funk is left in the ring and....some fireworks go off at the edge of the ring, to a muted response from the crowd. Funk looks rightly baffled and so him and Jack go to war for the next 3 minutes, as Cactus brings in a ladder and nails an elbow off it for two. Funk manages to topple the ladder as Jack climbs for a second time, him directly onto the barbed wire ropes. This is Funk’s last bit of energy gone though, and Jack crawls over to him for a slightly anticlimactic three count.

The Best Of Kerry Von Erich

Ever since watching the documentary disc on The Triumph & Tragedy of World Class, followed by the Heroes Of World Class film, I've had a soft spot for the Von Erich family. This prompted me to dig out this old USWA commercial tape I once bought from the Coventry branch of Cash Generator. The World Class territory didn't get any air time in the UK, so a tape like this would be pretty rare, making the fact my 18yr old self randomly chose this even more remarkable. Let's see how it goes...

Kerry Von Erich & Steve Simpson vs Iceman King Parsons & Buddy Roberts
This is still taken from the glory days of World Class, and Buddy’s hair looks wild here. We cut to commercial before the bell sounds and we return to Kerry injured on the floor, but he soon gets the hot tag following a discus punch. Both Kerry and Buddy look a little muted here, with both doing some pretty awkward looking bumping. Suffice to say that the exchanges between Parsons and Simpson look far better. The match is pretty short and uneventful, the ending seeing heel miscommunication causing Roberts to bump over the top from a Parsons butt-butt, and Von Erich rolling the Iceman up for three. Not the best start.

Kerry Von Erich vs Al Perez
This is a cage match for the World Class title. Gary Hart is handcuffed inside the ring to one of the corners, as he was apparently due to be handcuffed to Fritz before the whole “heart attack” angle. The commentary mentions Kerry’s cage match will Ric Flair 4 years previously, before Von Erich gets two from a backslide, the move which won him Flair’s NWA title in a later match. Perez doesn’t offer much in the way of offence in this match, but his bumping is stellar and makes Kerry’s offence look far more effective. Perez manages to block the Iron Claw, but leaves himself open to a stomach claw, which weakens him. The main problem with this match is that, for a world title cage match, it’s ultimately a little tame and lacking in passion. Perez fails to convey any personality here, while Kerry seems pretty half-arsed too. The end comes when the ref takes a bump and Perez rams Kerry throat-first into Hart’s handcuffs for the win. Disappointing.

Kerry & Kevin Von Erich vs Buddy Roberts & Terry Gordy
This is billed as a Badstreet match, with all four guys in street clothes. Kevin is even wearing boots, so you know it’s serious. This is also a match which blows away the cobwebs of the last two Kerry matches, as he and Gordy go hell for leather on each other from the get-go, which only ends when Gordy grabs Kerry in a bearhug and plants him with a belly-to-belly suplex. Roberts gets in, only for Kerry to pummel him with some belt shots. Kevin gets tagged in and the whole thing breaks down to a massive brawl. One which is fucking awesome, as the hate is palpable. Kevin takes a huge suplex on the concrete floor, while Kevin gets waffled with some vicious Gordy chairshots. The Von Erichs don’t just take offence, they dish it out too- one thing that’s so good is how Kevin, the smallest man in the match, will happily leap to punch out either of his opponents. In one brilliant scene, he rolls away from Gordy to allow him to swiftly pull his boot off and use it as a weapon on the bigger man. Gordy is a beast, hitting a brutal looking piledriver on Kevin, before planting him with a big back suplex. Kerry comes in with piledrivers of his own on both opponents, prompting this glorious line on commentary: “All’s fair in love and war and pro-wrestling”. Beautiful. At some point, Chris Adams and Iceman get involved, leading to the ref throwing the match out and an even bigger brawl taking place in the ring. This is all fucking magnificent.

Kerry Von Erich vs Tarras Bulba
Though not a classic, I like this match a lot as an example of how good a story Kerry could tell when he wanted to. Bulba is a much bigger man than Kerry, so Von Erich goes to the mat, taking out Bulba’s legs and getting away when Bulba tries to grab him. When Bulba does catch hold of him, Kerry is more than up for the fight and the subsequent brawl is pretty meaty. Kerry gets the Iron Claw, but Bulba breaks it easily. The commentators comment on KVE’s taped hand and how this will affect the claw. Kerry applies it again, Bulba again breaks free easily. Von Erich starts selling the hand injury, and the match now becomes about Kerry trying to win without his most powerful weapon. KVE gets control of the match with a series of clotheslines and the discus punch, and goes for a third claw on Bulba. Bulba applies the Mongolian Claw and it becomes a battle of whose claw is strongest, a battle Kerry wins. The Punisher runs in for the DQ and assaults Kerry post-match, focusing on the injured hand. Fun little match, with a good story to carry the action.

Kerry Von Erich, Kevin Von Erich & Steve Simpson vs Iceman King Parsons, Buddy Roberts & the Angel of Death
This is for the heel team’s 6-man titles, with the faces joined by Chris Adams at ringside. We start with a melee, and the faces gain control as we hit an early break. When we return, things have changed. Parson’s knocks Kerry to the floor, who very briefly plays face-in-peril until making a tag to a fired-up Kevin. Like with the streetfight, Kevin is awesome here, brimming with energy and babyface fight. The faces take control, with the two non-legal men being quick to leap in the ring if the heels try and cheat their way to an advantage, which is a nice touch. Simpson’s offence is pretty dull, all headlocks and sleepers, so it comes as a relief when he has to play face-in-peril. Terry Taylor attacks Adams at ringside, distracting the ref and allowing the Angel of Death to come in on the offensive while Simpson is pinning Roberts, dropping an elbow and letting Buddy roll up Simpson for three. Pretty dull, with only Kevin’s offence keeping it interesting. A best of Kevin video would go down a lot better than this one, I suspect.

Kerry Von Erich & Chris Adams vs Tarras Bulba & Sheik Braddock
The crowd is very much pro-faces, to the annoyance of Braddock, who reacts badly to the Adams-friendly crowd. The faces are much quicker, and use their superior speed to send the heels out of the ring. This seems to be a few months after the previous match, as KVE has no problems with his claw hand, applying it to Bulba early doors. Bulba gets the Mongolian Claw and we get a repeat of the claw battle from the previous match, with the Iron Claw winning yet again, but Bulba gets to the ropes. Adams is soon face-in-peril, which may be for the best as his selling is pretty top-notch considering how basic the heel offence is. The hot tag to Kerry leads to all four brawling in and around the ring (including Adams choking Braddock with the safety rope). Braddock applies an interminably long chinlock to Adams, but a hot tag brings in a fired-up Kerry who rolls up Braddock for three. Abrupt ending and loooong chinlock aside, this was pretty fun and a decent way to end the tape.